UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, recently announced the theme for this year’s World AIDS Day, the 30th Annual Commemoration of the event on December 1, as “Live Life Positively — Know Your HIV Status.”

The only way to know for sure whether you have HIV is to get tested. That’s why this December, Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) is encouraging people to learn their HIV status so they can make informed decisions about prevention and/or treatment for themselves and their loved ones.

In honor of World AIDS Day, the following locations and organizations are offering free HIV testing:

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), everyone between the ages of 13 and 64 should get tested for HIV at least once, and more frequently if they are at an increased risk of contracting the virus from a partner or through injection supplies, or if they have been diagnosed with another sexually transmitted infection.

In addition to HIV testing, JCPH provides the following care and prevention services:

Prescription of PrEP, or Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, a once-daily medication taken to prevent HIV

Access to condoms and information on how to use them

Testing and treatment for other sexually transmitted infections

A syringe services program, Points West, to offer access to new syringes and injection equipment, and free and confidential HIV and Hepatitis C testing to participants

Linkage to care to help individuals newly diagnosed with HIV, and those who have not been in medical care, become established with a provider to begin or resume treatment

Jefferson County Public Health (JCPH) is committed to promoting health and preventing injury and disease for the residents of Jefferson County, Colorado. Public health is what we as a society do collectively to prevent illness and premature death and promote health in our neighborhoods and communities. To learn more about JCPH, visit www.jeffco.us/public-health. You can also follow JCPH on Twitter @JeffcoPH and Facebook @jeffcopublichealth.